Thoughts

The days went on like normal, and Li Zian didn't treat his older brother any differently despite the horrible power he contained inside of him.

Li Shen didn't seem to realise the terrifying power he held, which was a relief for Li Zian. He didn't think a kind boy like Li Shen could cope knowing that he had the possibility to be such an evil existence.

Li Zian noticed three new Li family guards had appeared to replace the ones who had died, but they were visibly cautious- although the job was simple, the fact that three Golden Core Realm cultivators died immediately is a fact they can't just ignore.

Their lives could possibly be on the line.

Li Zian didn't care much about the Li family guards. He just got on with his life, cultivating diligently.

He finished his cultivation for the day, drenched in sweat, his entire body aching.

It had been another month since Li Shen's Body of Decay had awakened. He had two more months to reach the Qi Condensing Realm and could learn a technique.

According to his father, there existed techniques Body Training Realm cultivators could use- these were called martial arts, but they could only be found in the weakest kingdoms where cultivators above the Body Training Realm were rare.

It would be useless for him to learn a martial art, as by the time he needed to fight somebody he would be well beyond the Body Training Realm.

The thought of fighting somebody made him slightly nervous, and the idea of killing somebody was even worse.

He was a prosecutor in his past life- he put people who killed others behind bars. But now he would be the one doing the killing, and nobody would bat an eye?

From what he could work out from the books in the library, this world was incredibly lawless. There existed kingdoms and empires with governments, and they had their militaries, but there was no law enforcement. People could do whatever they wanted and face no punishment unless it went against a powerful family.

The more he thought about this subject, the more he came to realise that laws in a world like this were impossible to put into place. Cultivators are terrifying existences who strive towards immortality- you can't simply restrict them with a few words written on paper.

He wondered about the Li family, and how it worked. Did they have laws? What was the hierarchy like?

He knew his father was the leader of the Li family, and his grandfather had been the previous leader. But he had no clue about anything else.

He lived behind these walls, restricted from the rest of the world. He would be allowed to go beyond those walls once he turned ten, but for now he would remain ignorant about these matters.

He sighed and stood up from the stone bed, looking at Li Shen who was also climbing down from the stone bed.

The spiritual array dimmed, and the rich spiritual energy around them faded.

The two of them climbed up the stone steps into the villa.

The villa had been destroyed after his father's breakthrough several months ago but was rebuilt in less than a month. It was as if nothing had happened.

He didn't know who repaired the house, as he wasn't allowed near them, but he assumed they were members of the Li family. He wondered how many Li family members there were.

His father was at the Deity Transformation Realm, and he recalled something his father had said.

'I've finally caught up with my sister'.

That meant that his sister was also a Deity Transformation Realm cultivator, and since that was the second-to-last realm then the Li family must be incredibly powerful.

His grandfather was also incredibly powerful. Li Zian thought for a while as he made his way through the villa with his brother to a large open room, in which a single, large bathtub was waiting for them.

His father was eighty-eight years old, and already at the Deity Transformation Realm. His grandfather was over eight-hundred years old, which meant he was most likely at the Void Returning Realm.

But what lies beyond that? There must be a huge gap between that mysterious realm and the Void Returning Realm.

It terrified him to think of the power of such a cultivator. His mother was most likely at the Original Infant or Deity Transformation Realm, and she could summon giant dragons.

His father could split the sky with a single draw of his sword. How much devastation could a cultivator of the Void Returning Realm and beyond cause?

He stopped this train of thought and pulled off his clothes, climbing into the warm bathtub with his older brother.

He looked down at his body. A three-year old should be slightly chubby, but there were some visible muscles on his body, although not much

Once he finished the Body Training Realm would he be a buff toddler? A strange image appeared in his head which he pushed away.

Li Shen was eight, and the effects of the Body Training realm was quite visible on his body, unlike Li Zian. Several of his muscles were quite defined, and he looked older than what he actually was.

"What are you looking at?" He asked, splashing some bath water into Li Zian's face.

"Ow!"

"That didn't hurt, stop being a baby."

"I'm not."

"Yeah, you are."

"Hmph!"

Despite his past life's experiences, he could not help but revert to being a child occasionally. It was nice to grow up in a loving environment with people who genuinely cared about him.

He would never share moments like this with his siblings in his past life. They would ridicule him and push him away. But here, he was genuinely happy.

After the bath, he felt a lot more relaxed. He climbed into a simple light grey robe and looked in the mirror.

He had golden eyes just like his mother, and a cute childish face. His black hair was short, soft and messy after the bath. He wasn't very tall, obviously, but had quite a dignified aura due to his cultivation.

He walked to the front door of the villa and looked up at the sun. It hung low in the distance, meaning it was probably around six o'clock in the afternoon.

Beautiful rays of light were cast across the sky, painting it blue, red and purple. It was a sight to behold.

He smiled and made his way to the koi fishpond to observe the fish. They were like the koi fish in his previous life and shared the same name, except their bodies were glowing. He asked his mother about this, and she told him that they were 'spirit beasts'- animals and monsters that could cultivate.

He enjoyed learning little things about this world. He took in all the details and felt like he was truly becoming a new person.

But he never forgot his past life, no matter how far he moved away from it.

And so, another month passed.